5 ways Destiny 2 won over a Destiny hater

I wasn't a fan of the original Destiny but decided to approach the sequel with an open mind. Here are five things I like about Destiny 2.

The first Destiny didn't captivate me as I hoped it would when I learned Bungie would be coming out with a new game series, but I decided I'd give the sequel a go.

Picking up Destiny 2 at launch, I was surprised by initial campaign missions, the open world and what's on offer. Sure, there are some things I do not like about Destiny, but I've got five things in mind that make me glad I gave this a go.

It's a beautiful world

This game is gorgeous, even more than the first installation. You will have a hard time relaxing for a moment to take in the environment with all the action, but when you do, it's a sight to behold every time. And to think, Bungie has achieved this on the Xbox One with hardware that isn't up to the job of pushing out 60 frames each second (as seen on PC), but imagining Destiny 2 on Xbox One X gets me a little excited.

And the lighting effects, my goodness. Bring on the HDR.

Bedtime story

The fact that the original Destiny lacked a solid story bugged me, especially as a fan of the original Halo trilogy. Bungie has the talent to craft some incredible, immersive worlds and the first game fell flat when it came to the story. Thankfully, more attention has been paid to the story in Destiny 2, which is immediately apparent from the get go. Firing up the game for the first time surprised me with some epic opening narrative-driven content.

Still a solid shooter

Destiny had some great shooting mechanics, which is handy as that's what you do the most. Thankfully, it's just as great (if not better) in Destiny 2. As we noted in our beta impressions, Destiny 2's combat is incredibly fluid and responsive, and you really need to play through a scene to enjoy just how great it is.

There are some enemies where you get tired of the bullet sponge effect, but the design and AI ensure you're moving around and utilizing cover more than not.

Grinding gears

I'm a fan of "grind" games, when they're designed right, of course. I've wasted hours in Diablo to get only the best gear for my characters, not to mention Runescape back in the good old days to hunt down skill capes.

Destiny's own grinding didn't interest me enough to pull me in, but since the sequel has various improvements, it has become something I'm really enjoying. You got to work for loot, and I'm on board to pray to the RNG God for the drops I need.

Gorgeous UI

I really, really like the UI in Destiny 2. The map is excellent, showing public events, adventures and other points of interest. It's easy to team up with mates and clan members (even though the latter isn't yet live, sigh Activision). The inventory screen is easy to navigate and check which gear is best for deployment.

The best thing of all, however, is the fact you can move between planets without the additional trip into space first. This makes Destiny 2 flow far, far better than its predecessor.

While I've handed over five things I like about Destiny 2, it's by no means a perfect game. It's a fun time sinker, sure, but I'm unsure whether it'll have enough to keep me coming back for more further down the line. In the meantime, I'm having somewhat of a blast. It's all about that end-game content, and I'll have to see how Bungie approaches this.

Reader comments

5 ways Destiny 2 won over a Destiny hater

My 50th birthday happened to be last Wendesday when the game dropped. I became a Destiny "Widow" as I wanted to go to Chicago and attend a concert, but my gamer husband had other plans (in all fairness he did attend to my birthday and we did things locally). But me being a gamer and playing Destiny 1, I had to try it out as he actually ended up with a digital copy and the disc. I ended up playing it most all the weekend, beat the campaign with my warlock from Destiny 1 and even picked up a new game with my Titan. I maxed out my level with the Warlock at 20 (and he currently sits at a 260 power level). I enjoyed the game, but I even went back to Diablo and played that endless classic. I am not tied to the franchise like my hubby is, as when Wolfenstein comes out in October I will be playing that. But was it worth a $60 purchase? Yes it was

You actually don't need the first game at all. Although there are very subtle references to people from the first, not much at all. U can create a new character and get emerged just as much. Everyone starts with nothing so it's fair :)

There are no differing gravity effects. Combat is slightly more dynamic than the original, but if you found the first game's combat "repetitive", then this is more of the same. The context around the combat however, is dramatically improved.